Released back in 2020 on Steam, As Far As The Eye makes its way onto the Nintendo Switch. It seems a lot of developers are trying to get their games onto that console if they feel it’s a good fit. Developers, Unexpected, did just that, because this little roguelike game does compliment the on-the-go capabilities of the Switch. This is also a turn-based resource management game and while both of those genres can be great, I’m not that particularly fond of the roguelike elements mixing in with the rest of the game.
It seems like you play as the wind in this game, with the isometric gameplay, that concept works pretty well. Your goal is to guide this nomadic type tribe towards a place of land called “The Eye.” The maps are sectioned in a honeycomb grid like presentation called holts. Throughout your playthroughs you are guiding your pupils and having them collect the resources necessary to continue on. While doing so, you must also look after the pupils by making sure they are fed, help them with whatever obstacles they endure on the map, and even needing to help cure them if they fall sick. Each pupil also has a skill tree that will grant them specific perks to each kind of the different resources you collect.
The overall concept of the game is really good, but as I said, I really don’t enjoy the fact that they made it into a roguelike game. With roguelikes, I feel you’re supposed to learn something from all your runs and do better on the next one. There are also random encounters that add a bit of risk/reward element to your play through. But more often than not, my failings were often due to environmental hazards that were out of my control. As a player, who is trying to accomplish a specific goal, and your skill alone can’t get you there because you weren’t lucky enough is just something that feels deeply flawed to me in a game mechanic.
There are three gameplay modes; campaign, custom games, and predefined games. The campaign is a good introduction on how to play, but it does really overwhelm you with text boxes explaining a bit too much. Custom games allow you to edit the parameters of the playthrough to make it as challenging or as easy as you’d like. The predefined maps are as what you’d expect, essentially custom games that were not made by you.
The look of As Far As The Eye is very pretty with very bright and complimentary colors. It has a very pleasing and charming look overall. With a sound design and music that is very calming, welcoming, and gentle. Ultimately, while there are aspects of the game I did really like, it wasn’t really for me. It could be for you, and the ability to play this on-the-go I think would make for it to be more enticing to possible buyers. At the end of the day, it’s hard for me to give it a recommendation, it just wasn’t for me, but it very well could be for you. If this sort of game speaks to you, then I suggest watching some videos on it to do more research, or wait for a sale before trying it out. They all can’t be winners for me sadly.
6/10
For more information, visit: https://www.nintendo.com/store/products/as-far-as-the-eye-switch/
Gaming since I was given an original Nintendo as a kid. I love great storytelling and unique ingenuity. When both collide in a single game, I'm a happy gamer. Twitter/IG @NickNavarro87
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